Losing Pounds Not Sizes??? Please Help!!!

I started back dieting and exercising after we moved in May. May 23 I logged a weight of 258 lbs and now June 23 I'm down to 235. I haven't been starving myself or over exercising. I just eat healthy with smaller portions and I exercise 3-5 times a week for about an hour. I feel great but I'm still in the same clothes I was in May and I still have trouble getting them on... what am I doing wrong??? I don't understand how I can lose 23 lbs and still be in an 18...somebody please help me!!

This may not be that unsusual. It took me quite a while to drop a pants size. I think I dropped about 30 before I actually moved down a size. For me, the waistline is the absolute last place where the weight comes off. Give it some more time and I'm sure you'll be ready for new clothes. I'm fairly certain you'll be ready for new clothes whitin the next 3 weeks or so, assuming you keep up your regimen.

I was in the same boat exactly the first 5 weeks! I had lost well over 15 lbs, with NO change in waist size.   It was so frustrating!  I was losing elswhere though, 2 inches off the bust, 1/2 off the hips, etc.  But I wanted to feel it in my pant size! 

I now blame the change in diet, I'm eating much more fiber than I was used to and I now know I was bloating quite a bit.   Now just three weeks later my body has finally adjusted, I have less bloating, and TWO full sizes have dropped off in the last three weeks.   

So hang in there, and if you haven't already, get a measuring tape and measure ALL your body parts.  Waist, hip, bust, upper arm, lower arm, thighs, calves.  That way you'll see that yes, you are losing, though maybe just not exactly where you want it from at first.

Good luck!

Hey, I'm in a similar position. I've lost 17lbs and I haven't gone down a size.  My shape has changed - I'm less lumpy (less fat on my back, thighs etc) so I look slimmer but my dress size is still the same.  I think it'll be another 8lbs or so before I go down. Don't worry about it, you'll look and feel better and the numer on your label doens't matter as much as how you feel about your shape.

This may sound harsh but it sounds like at 258 you must have been VERY uncomfortable in a size 18.  235 sounds like a more comfotable 18 depending on your height and that still might be a little tight.  Do me a favor and take your honest measurements, don't pull the tape tight and then compare the measurements to the sizing charts, you might find out that you have lost a couple of sizes.

Hi there jmercer

First of all, you say you started this healthy living in May....well technically that's only about 5 or 6 weeks so you are actually doing GREAT!   WAY TO GO!

Next, I was 250 lbs and I WISH i was a size 18.  i was more like a 22-24.  Take honest measurements and keep on doing what you are doing!  You don't have to KILL yourself working out more than what you are doing!  Please give it more time to notice more of a change.  once those inches start coming off more noticably, you'll get more and more motivated to keep on going too!!!  It's exciting all around!

Look at it this way....you've almost lost 25 lbs already!  WOOT WOOT! GO YOU!

If you are looking to drop 50 lbs total, you are half way there. 
If you are looking to drop 75 lbs total, third of the way there.

Baby steps will help keep you motivated and focused!

You are doing better than a lot of others here so please be patient.  I'm sure you look and feel a ton better already!  Keep up the great work gf!

~H~

I was size 18 at 205 (I'm 5'3") and I was still wearing some 16s (depending on style and fabric--pretty stretched out).  It took me 30 pounds to drop down to a true 14.  And another 20 to drop to a 12. 

And each time, it was like I was losing weight but not inches, until suddenly it caught up.  For example, at New Years, I'd lost 40 pounds, and my family hadn't seen me between about 20 and 40.  They could tell I'd lost some weight, but not a big deal.  Then I saw them all again at Mother's Day, and I'd lost only 10 more pounds, yet everyone was shocked at that change.  (From 14 to 12.)

Also, the larger size clothing (ladies/womens sizes) has a larger gap between sizes.

Check out the Old Navy.. Gap.. AE.. etc jeans size charts if you're curious. They won't paste nicely, and it's in a popup on the website..

Basically, over size 14, instead of each size being 1" different, they're 2".. which means that if you're wearing a larger size, it takes a greater loss/shrinkage to need to go down in size.

I also should add that.. at my start weight of 253 (and being 5'1), I was very comfortable in a size 18, non-stretch jean from American Eagle. It really depends on where you store your fat, as well as how much of your body fat IS indeed fat and how much is muscle mass.

i can only guess here & go from experience.  maybe have someone else that you trust do your measurements.  what sort of exercises are you doing? also what foods are you eating? maybe just maybe you are just bloated especially if you are getting too much sodium. if i eat too much bread that happens to me, and too much cheese since im a little lactose intolerant.  

Different people lose weight from different areas first, before other parts of the body can lose weight.  For example, I lose weight first from my waist, and last from my chest (lucky me).  Perhaps your arms are getting smaller now, in that circumstance you wouldn't notice your pants size decreasing.

I found that it was my muscle tone filling out whilst I was losing fat. My overall shape is immensly better though. I've only a few pounds or so to lose, and it was when I couldn't squish my butt into my ballgown again (even though the measurements were the same) that I realised... My bust has also gone up half an inch...